The present invention is directed to an anesthetic dispensing station and method of using same, and more particularly, to an anesthetic dispensing station which may be operated to individually dispense hypodermic needles and/or liquid anesthetic cartridges.
In the practice of medicine, particularly dentistry, a clinician or dentist will regularly use a number of medical tools and materials to administer local anesthetic to a patient. These medical tools and materials include hypodermic syringes and needles, cotton-tipped swabs, gauze, topical anesthetic gel, and cartridges containing liquid anesthetics such as novocaine, lidocaine, epinephrine or isocaine. The dentist will use gauze to wipe saliva from the area to be anesthetized and then apply topical anesthetic gel to the area using a cotton-tipped swab. The dentist will then administer the liquid anesthetic to the area using a hypodermic syringe and needle.
In administering local anesthetic, it would be convenient and efficient for the dentist to have all of the necessary medical tools and materials collected and dispensed from a single location or station. This would be helpful not only to save precious space and facilitate organization of today""s compact dental offices, but also would allow the dentist to easily retrieve additional medical tools and materials for administering further local anesthetic should it be required during a procedure.
A number of devices have been developed for holding and dispensing some of the necessary medical tools and materials for administering local anesthetic. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,162,322 to Gilbertson discloses a dispenser for holding a plurality of liquid anesthetic cartridges for individual dispensing. The Gilbertson device is operated by manually squeezing two side handles together, causing a cartridge to drop into a slot cavity where a piston then pushes the cartridge laterally forward into the open end of the slot to be retrieved by the user. Importantly, the device disclosed in Gilbertson does not provide containers to hold the other medical tools and materials which are used in dental procedures in conjunction with the cartridges held in the device. In addition, in operation of the Gilbertson device, the user must necessarily use his or her hands, thereby contaminating the device with blood and/or saliva if handled during a medical procedure. Not only must the user operate the handles with contaminated hands, but retrieval of the laterally oriented cartridge increases the chance that the user will also contact the area surrounding the open end of the slot.
Another device for holding and dispensing some of the necessary medical tools and materials for administering local anesthetic is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,546,292 to Waxman. Waxman discloses a chest for storing, heating and dispensing hypodermic needles and liquid anesthetic cartridges. The chest also includes a number of openings for holding hypodermic syringes. The user operates the Waxman device by depressing a handle which causes an individual cartridge or hypodermic needle to roll from an inclined ramp into a slot in the handle and then into a retainer shelf when the handle is released. Subsequently, the cartridge may then be retrieved. Like the Gilbertson device, the configuration of the Waxman device necessarily requires the user to depress the handle with contaminated hands if the device is used during a medical procedure. Also, while including openings for holding hypodermic syringes, the Waxman device does not provide containers to hold the other medical tools and materials which are used in dental procedures in conjunction with the cartridges held in the device, such as topical anesthetic gel, cotton-tipped swabs and gauze.
It should be understood that the descriptions provided for the above-discussed patents are intended to be synopses of such patents. Reference should be made directly to the patents to completely understand the information disclosed therein.
The present invention is designed to overcome the aforementioned problems and meet the aforementioned, and other, needs.
The present invention is directed to a dispensing station for individually dispensing tubular members. In one embodiment, the dispensing station includes a housing having an aperture therein. Tubular members are stored within the housing and an actuator protrudes from the housing. When a force is exerted on the actuator in a first direction, a tubular member is dispensed through the aperture in the housing in a second direction, wherein the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction. The actuator protrudes from the housing such that the actuator may be depressed without a user""s hands. For example, the actuator may be depressed using one""s forearm or elbow. Furthermore, the tubular member is dispensed through the aperture such that the user may manually retrieve the tubular member without contacting the housing. Advantageously, the tubular member may be dispensed without contaminating the dispenser. A method for individually dispensing tubular members is also disclosed herein.
Other embodiments, objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following specification taken in conjunction with the following drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an anesthetic dispensing station in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a top view, partially in phantom, of the anesthetic dispensing station shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3xe2x80x943 of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4A is a sectional view taken along line 4xe2x80x944 of FIG. 2, wherein the actuator has not yet been depressed;
FIG. 4B is a sectional view similar to FIG. 4A, wherein the actuator is in a partially depressed position; and
FIG. 4C is a sectional view similar to FIG. 4A, wherein the actuator is in a depressed position.